Lockheed Martin: What kind of company is it?

Glenn L. Martin, cover subject of Time magazine, May 29, 1939. During World War II, Lockheed lacked sufficient production facilities—P-38 Lightning fighters were assembled right on city streets. During World War II, Martin Aircraft Company: B-26 bombers awaiting delivery parked in front of the company’s administrative building. April 26, 1943: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Nebraska Governor Dwight Griswold, and Glenn L. Martin at the Omaha bomber plant. A Lockheed print advertisement from 1943. A Martin Aircraft Company print advertisement: "The Rescuer Is Here!" June 1944: Lockheed unveiled America’s first operationally viable jet fighter—the XP-80. A rare photograph from 1950: left to right—executives of Lockheed Corporation, President Robert Gross, and Glenn L. Martin, President of Martin Aircraft Company. Forty-five years later, the two companies merged. Kelly Johnson—the legendary Lockheed designer—and the F-104 Starfighter; he was also the first president of the Skunk Works. In 1954, Lockheed introduced the C-130 Hercules transport aircraft. To date, over 2,700 units have been produced. Shown here is the 200th C-130J Super Hercules rolling off the production line in 2010. The U-2 high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft made its maiden flight in 1955. The P-3C anti-submarine patrol aircraft made its first flight in 1959. The SR-71 Blackbird made its maiden flight in 1966. Lockheed products undergoing testing at Edwards Air Force Base in 1966. The C-5 Galaxy strategic transport aircraft won the U.S. Air Force contract over Boeing’s proposal; its first flight occurred in 1968. Shown here is the latest variant, the C-5M Super Galaxy. In 1950, Martin introduced the Martin 404 civilian airliner, aiming to establish a foothold in this market—but it could not compete effectively against successors like Douglas and Boeing, and ultimately abandoned commercial aviation to gradually shift focus toward space. It became one of the earliest aerospace pioneers forced out of the atmosphere. In 1959, Martin introduced America’s first multi-stage intercontinental ballistic missile, the Titan I. In 1961, Martin merged with Marietta Corporation, becoming Martin Marietta. In 1968, it acquired Harvey Aluminum, renowned for aircraft manufacturing; in 1992, it acquired GE Aerospace. In 1970, Lockheed launched the L-1011 TriStar—a medium-to-long-range wide-body jet airliner. Unable to compete with Douglas’s DC-10 and Boeing’s 747, Lockheed ceased commercial aircraft production after building only 250 units, ending its civil aviation business entirely in 1984. The F-117A Nighthawk made its maiden flight in 1981. At the 1988 Farnborough International Airshow, Lockheed test pilots visited Sukhoi Design Bureau’s Su-27 fighter jet. Lockheed’s exhibition booth at the 1994 Farnborough International Airshow. In 1995, Lockheed and Martin Marietta completed their merger. On the first day of the new stock issuance, Norman Augustine (left), Chairman of Martin Marietta, and Daniel Tellep, Chairman of Lockheed, posed for a photo outside the New York Stock Exchange. In 1996, Lockheed Martin acquired the defense electronics and systems division of Loral Corporation, becoming the world’s largest defense contractor.

Baillie Gifford: Preparing Before Change

Over time, the composition of each category helps explain our investment approach. We once held four tobacco companies—today, we hold none. The core holdings in our current portfolio include technology infrastructure companies such as Microsoft, SAP, and Broadridge. In the high-growth segment, we previously owned two emerging-market telecom operators. But as companies like Alibaba in China and Mail.ru in Russia emerged, we shifted toward the significantly larger growth opportunities they offered. We moved away from well-known FANG (Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, Google) and BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent) stocks toward more specialized, potentially dominant online businesses—such as Spotify in music streaming and Adevinta in certain online classified advertising markets. The growth categories we pursue: Steady Growth: Mastercard – Enduring franchise – Strong profitability across most macroeconomic environments – Dominant local scale, customer loyalty, and brand strength Mastercard has built a global international payment system, earning revenue from transaction flows within that system. Its scale delivers massive returns: growth is exceptionally valuable, and the company possesses ample capital for investment, margin expansion, and free cash flow generation—all while charging only a tiny fee on each transaction. We believe its business will continue growing for many years ahead, driven by the ongoing decline in cash usage and its expansion into new transaction domains—including B2B payments—via its network. We project annual revenue growth of approximately 10%, and profit growth of 15% or higher—typical of our strongly growing holdings. Cyclical Growth: Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE: MLM) – Affected by macroeconomic and capital cycles – Significant structural growth prospects – Strong management team with exceptional capital allocation skills Martin Marietta supplies construction aggregates and heavy building materials across North America. As an outstanding capital allocator, it has a proven history of timely, counter-cyclical acquisitions. In 90% of its local markets, the company ranks first or second—its demand supported by favorable demographic trends and rising populations across many U.S. states, alongside increasing national demand for public infrastructure investment. Moreover, its dominant position across diverse markets confers pricing power. Combined with its capital allocation expertise, this enables Martin Marietta to deliver attractive growth across the entire economic cycle. High Growth: Naspers – Dynamic businesses and substantial growth opportunities – Capacity to reshape industries – Innovators creating new markets South Africa-based Naspers focuses on investing in pioneers: high-growth, technology-enabled enterprises primarily in emerging markets. Its current business areas include online classifieds, food delivery and payments, as well as social media and internet platforms.

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Martin Marietta benefits from strong aggregates pricing power amid infrastructure demand, countering housing headwinds from high interest rates. Management focuses on portfolio optimization and capital allocation for future growth.

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